49 days ago.
Judith Harrington, the daughter of a fallen Baron, was dragged by her brother, Leon Harrington, by the hand or rather, by the hair to a shabby temple.
She was so frightened by Leon's handcuffs that she stood on the wedding road after hearing only a very brief explanation.
The groom's name is Erne Rhineland, and he is the illegitimate son and last surviving member of the House of Rhineland. If Judith marries him, she will become the Countess of Rhineland.
As the explanation went on, a veil was placed over her head and an unnecessarily showy bouquet was placed in her hand.
Judith was pushed back, her head spinning and her stomach churning. The wedding road was short and her husband-to-be sat slumped in his chair.
She wonders if he's alive.
Judith glanced at the man. He was so beautiful that she could not help but admire him even in this strange situation.
Judith forgot about reality and fear for a moment and admired the man. It was a wedding where no one, not the bride or the groom, answered, only the officiant spoke.
Although it was a wedding ceremony with only the formalities in mind, the officiant demanded a final kiss of oath.
The feeble Judith bent down, trembling. Her back was damp with cold sweat, and her chest was tight... With her face as blank as a sheet of paper, Judith tried to kiss her husband, but his neck snapped.
"...!"
Then Judith collapsed, making a sound that was either a sob or a gasp.
And that was the last memory of Judith Harrington.
"...That's what happened."
Eugene, possessed by Judith's body, frowned and muttered at the dull pain rising from her scalp.
As soon as I came to my senses, my head started to hurt as I digested the memories of Judith's past that came pouring out like a tidal wave.
Judith's memory reflects on the aftereffects of her brother grabbing her by the hair while trying to escape. My arm, which had been grabbed by his vicious hands, was throbbing, and my ankle, which had been twisted while being dragged, was also numb.
'Fuck. I'm going to buy you a fortune.'
In my last life, I was hit by a truck and ended up dead, and now I'm coming back to life as a beggar. I thought about the things I left behind in my last life.
All the things I had worked hard to achieve, even though I still had the loan, the small apartment in my name, the savings, the deposits. When I remembered the beef I had bought to cheer myself up for the first time in my life but never got to eat, tears welled up in my eyes.
I thought I could escape from the mountain of debt and walk on a path of flowers, but who would have thought I would end up walking on the path to hell?
"Your husband's name was Erne Rhineland."
The Lord clearly said so. If I think the name sounds familiar, the world I possessed was a novel called (As Above, So Below).
It wasn't hard to guess, since the only novel I've ever bought and read in my entire life was "As Above, So Below."
Among the many characters, it felt like a punishment to be in the body of a poor woman from a fallen family who didn't even appear in the original work.
"No, it must be a coincidence."
I wanted to believe it was a coincidence. I didn't live a completely good life, but no one doesn't make a single mistake in their entire life. Besides, I paid for all the sins of my past life by getting hit by a truck and dying.
"Madam, have you been coughing?"
A low voice came from outside the door.
I, now Countess Judith Rhineland, who had been lost in thought, answered in a sleepy voice.
"Oh, yes."
Soon the door opened and a middle-aged man with gray hair came in.
"It is time to attend the funeral."
The man put down the mourning clothes he had offered with both hands and left without saying anything. I slowly changed into the mourning clothes.
My mind was still in turmoil, but I couldn't stay locked in this small room any longer. So I was invited to a very small funeral with no visitors.
***
It was very strange to hear that the Countess had been invited to the funeral of the Count of Rhineland, but it could not be expressed in any other word than an invitation.
Because the funeral had already been prepared. All I had to do was lay flowers on the coffin that was buried in the ground.
'That's strange.'
It seems like they were preparing the funeral in advance. Otherwise, the funeral couldn't have been prepared this quickly.
The time of Erne's death was late yesterday afternoon, and it is now dawn. Let's say the ground was dug as soon as the sun rose.
What about the tombstone then?
In this world where there is no laser engraving technology, they created a stele with a family crest engraved so beautifully in just a short time? That's ridiculous.
'It looks like they engraved the family crest, name, and date of birth, and then added the date of death? Hmm, that seems suspicious.'
Erne, who became my husband, was a fairly important character unlike Judith, who did not even appear in the original work.
He was an outstanding knight who was a war hero, but later switched to the villain side and survived until the end.
'So now it means after the ending.'
But wait, since when has Erne been the Count of Rhineland? He was supposed to be the Count's illegitimate son.
"Madam, do you remember me saying hello to you yesterday? My name is Cliff Ackerman."
Just then, a man who could resolve my doubts approached me. Cliff Ackerman, the lawyer of the Rhineland family.
"I will take you to your future residence. I will explain the inheritance to you as we go.'
"Inheritance?"
"Yes. Didn't Mr. Leon explain it to you?"
He did, but it was more of a threat than an explanation. He said he would kill me if I didn't do what he said, or shave my head, etc.
In fact, I had broken my leg after being beaten by Leon. So I was very scared and went through with the suspicious wedding without saying a word.
"The Counts of Rhineland have all died out with Erne. Now, you are the only one who bears the surname Rhineland."
"Yes?"
Cliff added a kind explanation as he watched me looking confused.
"Erne was the Count's illegitimate child, but he became the first heir when the Count's entire family died."
Even that is dead, Cliff said, trailing off.
"So now, Madam, as the first heir, you will inherit everything of the House of Rhineland. You will become the head of the House of Rhineland and the acting Countess."
This meant that the mansion, the title, other properties, rights, and obligations, all became mine.
What? Is wealth falling from the sky? If it's a mansion, it's real estate. Does that mean I get free real estate?
I was more bewildered than happy. As far as I knew, nothing in this world was free, and this marriage was suspicious above all else.
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